Lensmann
Lensmann in modern Norwegian or lensmand in Danish and older Norwegian spelling is a term with several distinct meanings in Nordic history. The Icelandic equivalent was a hreppstjóri, Swedish länsman and Finnish nimismies.
Fief-holder
The term lensmann traditionally referred to a holder of a royal fief in Denmark and Norway. As the fiefs were renamed amt in 1662, the term lensmand was replaced with amtmand. In Norway these offices evolved into the modern fylkesmann office. Modern Norwegian historians often use the term lensherre instead of lensmann, although from the legal point of view, the king was the fief lord, and the title used by contemporaries was lensmand, not lensherre.While the lensmann was a fief-holder from the nobility, the amtmann was a civil servant who might be ennobled as a reward.
| Office | Lensmann | Amtmann |
| General governing power | Yes | No |
| Military commander | Yes | No |
| Tax collector | Yes | No |
| Fiscal accountability | No | Yes |